'Just OK': The Trader Joe's Frozen Meal That Fails To Match Takeout, According To Reviews

Trader Joe's is no stranger to frozen meals, and the brand offers options well beyond the standard fare. The chain offers all different types of cuisines from Mexican to Italian, and even classic American options such as mac and cheese or mini cheeseburgers. With all the different meals, some of these are bound to hit, and others... not so much.

One such lackluster frozen meal from Trader Joe's is the Teriyaki Chicken Bowl. Retailing for $4.79, at some stores, for an 11-ounce portion, the meal consists of dark chicken thigh meat atop a mixture of rice, broccoli, carrots, and bok choy, all smothered in a teriyaki sauce. In theory, all this sounds delicious, but in reality, Trader Joe's has done much better with other meals aside, and the Teriyaki Chicken Bowl is just mediocre at best.

In one Reddit thread, the best feedback you'll find about this frozen meal is that it's "just ok." "The sauce seemed underwhelming with not much flavor," one user said. From there, things get a lot worse, with dozens of negative comments from customers who've tried and disliked this Trader Joe's meal. It's safe to say this is one of those items you should never buy at Trader Joe's.

The poor Reddit feedback about the Trader Joe's Teriyaki Bowl seemingly never ends. One customer claimed that the chicken tastes old and has a gamey texture. "Found this thread three months later just to comment on how terrible this bowl was," they said. Another customer claimed that the rice has a mushy texture. 

Even Trader Joe's fan accounts are down on this frozen meal. One review from ClubTraderJoes.com, for example, confirmed that the rice is gummy. "[It blends] right into the sauce to create a texture that was more 'sludge' than 'satisfying.' The vegetables, while visually present, lacked any real bite or freshness," they said. Another Instagram user agreed. "The rice and veggies were on the mushy side, and the teriyaki sauce leaned way too sweet for my taste," they said.

Now we're not here to put TJ's on blast for one swing and a miss. The brand creates plenty of high-quality meals, including many fan-favorite frozen dinners that are less than $5. We also think the grocery store chain has quite a few hidden gems in its freezer aisle, like the Mushroom & Black Truffle Flatbread or the Korean Beefless Bulgogi. When you make the amount of frozen meals that Trader Joe's makes, you're bound to miss on a few. Overall, we think that TJ's has a lot of great options on its freezer aisle — the Chicken Teriyaki Bowl notwithstanding.